Villanova, PA (My Sportsbook) - The St. John's Red Storm face their fourth straight Top-25 opponent this afternoon, as they pay a visit to the 23rd- ranked Villanova Wildcats for a Big East Conference clash at The Pavilion.
St. John's has dropped two in a row and five of its last six overall to fall to 10-6 on the year and 1-3 in conference. The Red Storm suffered a 67-55 setback to Connecticut the last time out, and the team has yet to taste victory in a true road game, going 0-3 thus far.
As for the Wildcats, they are 13-3 on the season, but just 1-2 in Big East play. They have done a nice job in front of the hometown faithful (8-1), although they did suffer their first home loss of the year last weekend in a heartbreaking 61-60 setback to Louisville at the Wachovia Center. Still, the 'Cats have won five of their last seven and would love nothing more than to go on a nice little run as they stare down the barrel of a loaded conference slate.
Villanova is St. John's most frequently played opponent with this being the 102nd meeting between the two. The Red Storm own a 59-42 edge in the series, but the Wildcats have taken the last four meetings.
Paris Horne scored 24 points, but his effort wasn't nearly enough as the Red Storm fell to UConn on Thursday, 67-55. Horne is one of several St. John's players currently averaging double digits in scoring, checking in at 13.2 ppg. The team as a whole is netting 69.8 ppg on the strength of 44.5 percent shooting from the field, although a poor 27.9 percent showing from three-point range means the team is at a distinct disadvantage in most games when opposing defenses drop down in the paint and dare the Storm to beat them out on the perimeter. D.J. Kennedy and Sean Evans round out the unit's offensive-minded performers, averaging 13.3 and 10.1 ppg, respectively. Kennedy is the team's rebounding leader with 7.1 caroms per contest.
Villanova features three double-digit scorers, led by Dante Cunningham and his 17.4 ppg. Cunningham, a 53.4 percent shooter from the field overall, is also the club's top glass cleaner with 7.8 rpg -- helping the Wildcats to a +5.8 rebounding edge on the year. Scottie Reynolds (15.6 ppg, 3.9 apg) and Corey Stokes (10.2 ppg, .444 three-point FG percentage) are both solid players who complement Cunningham's inside game perfectly. Villanova is shooting 44.3 percent from the floor this season while logging 74.1 ppg. Defensively, coach Jay Wright's squad is permitting just 60.9 ppg on 38.6 percent field goal efficiency and the 'Cats come up with 15 turnovers per game on average. Cunningham is coming off a 21-point effort in the narrow loss to Louisville. The Wildcats shot just 37.7 percent from the floor in that clash, but outscored the Cardinals at the foul line (18-10) and held them to a mere 38.7 percent field goal efficiency, which included a dreadful 3-of-25 showing from downtown.
